Chapter Sixty Two - Cenger

I'd finally gathered the courage to tell Blake about us, but Matt told me to do it once we were done with the exams. It made sense, and I readily agreed because, honestly, I still didn't think I was prepared to tell him.

And with the finals over now, I was slowly devising how to drop the big revelation on my brother. There was no rush from Matt. He really didn't mind anymore, and I couldn't be more thankful.

Honestly, telling Blake about us was the least of my concerns now because with each passing day, Matt was closer to leaving for college and just the thought of his absence scared me a whole lot more than my brother's reaction to our relationship. So, I spent all the time I could with Matt.

It didn't matter if I had to lie to my brother and say I was going out with friends and end up in Matt's room right after. I really didn't care as long as I got to be with him.

"Scrabble again?" He made a face.

"I suck at chess. Or maybe you're too good at it. This is the only game where I can defeat you."

"Defeat me?" he scoffed. "How? By making up your own words?"

"I don't wanna start with you again. You're a sore loser. Cenger is a word."

"Google's never heard of it."

"Google doesn't know shit," I said, biting down on my lip to hide a smile. He noticed that and smiled himself, shaking his head.

"Of course," he agreed. "My bad. From now on, you're the cenger of my world."

I burst out laughing and, at the same time, chucked a lettered tile at him.

*****

Blake wanted to start with my driving lessons on Sunday. Before we got into his car, he gave it a dramatic pat, saying, "So long, baby. You were good to me."

"You're such a drama queen." I shook my head while buckling my seatbelt.

"Why do I have to be a part of this?" Nick complained from the backseat. "I did not sign up to die so young."

"Wow. What is it with guys always discouraging me when I wanna do something new? Y'all suck." I glowered at him.

"What guys are you talking about here, Becks?" Nick smirked at me through the rear view.

"The ones I wanna say 'why don't you shut your face' to." I smiled sarcastically.

"Your sister's mean to me, Blake."

"Okay. You guys can do this all day. Come on now, Becks. Start the engine."

I did as he said and slowly pulled the car out of the driveway. He was a little surprised when I started driving around the block smoothly.

"Have you driven before?" he asked.

"Yes. My friends are a lot more generous than you when it comes to their cars."

"Wow." He nodded, impressed. "You're doing great."

After about half an hour, I slowly started pulling the car in our driveway. "Okay! Now you gotta be alert, Blake. I don't have the best track record in parking."

I carefully checked my mirrors and started to reverse to parallel park between the two poles on our driveway like my brother had asked me to.

"Okay. Did you crash someone's car?" He chuckled.

"I did. Twice. In the same minute."

"Damn!" Nick muttered, then shouted a second later, "Stop! Stop! Stop! There's a cat!"

My foot hit the brake pedal. "Oh my God! I didn't hit him, did I?"

Nick jumped out of the car, rushed to the back, and sighed in relief. "No."

"Oh, thank God!" I put the car in Park, killed the engine, and ran out. As expected, it was Cheeto. He was right next to the back tire and was trying to nibble on it. Silly cat.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" I muttered to him, picking him up. He instantly purred in my arms.

"Why can't he keep his cats in check?" Blake scowled. "Is it hurt?"

"No, he's fine." I scratched his ears. "This one's real trouble. I think he loves our house, Blake. He's always sneaking here."

"Or maybe he doesn't like that house. Even his cat hates him." He sneered.

I rolled my eyes. "I'll go give him back."

"No. Give him to me. I'll do it. I'm also gonna tell him to keep an eye on them. Why even get so many cats when you can't take care of them?"

"He had only one cat who was impregnated by some mysterious feline. These kittens were unexpected," I explained, recalling how Matt had said he would get that male cat castrated if he ever got his hands on him. I softly chuckled to myself.

"Why do you know so much about his cats?" Blake furrowed his brows.

I groaned slightly. "I'm his neighbour, Blake. This little dude keeps sneaking to our house. I asked Matt, okay? Now, if you don't mind, I'll take Cheeto back to his house."

"Cheeto?" He snickered. "He named his cat Cheeto? What a dumbass! I'm not even surprised."

Hurt. I was hurt.

Blake read my expression and, in bafflement, asked, "What?"

"I'm the one who named him that, Blake. When he first came to our house, he was just a baby, and I learned from Matt that he had no name yet. So, he took what I gave him. I'd given him Cheeto."

He blinked. "Oh, well! Nice name."

"Whatever," my tone was snappy as I turned towards Matt's house. He was already on his way across the street when he saw me and stopped.

"Hey!" I approached him with a smile.

"I knew it." He shook his head at Cheeto. "I was just on my way to come and get him."

"It's okay."

He took him from my hands, just watched me for a second, cut a glance at my brother behind me, and took a reluctant step back. "I'll see you later, I guess."

"Just because my brother is watching, it doesn't mean we can't even talk," I muttered.

He seemed a little taken aback as one of his brows shot up. "Uh huh?"

"Is he still watching us?"

"Yes. I don't think he's even blinking." He tucked his lower lip under his teeth to stifle a laugh.

I chuckled, and a confused smile fell on Matt's face. "You're oddly daring today. Not scared of your brother anymore?"

"No, I'm not—"

"Becks!" I heard my brother call and flipped around. "Are you coming?"

"In a minute," I replied. "You guys can head inside."

I turned back around to find a look of approval sitting on Matt's face.

"What was that?" Blake asked.

I rolled my eyes, letting out a sigh.

"It's okay." Matt nodded at me with half a smile. "Go before he starts simmering."

"I'll see you later. Bye."

"Bye."

I made my way back across the street.

"You're like a little child, Blake Andrews." I rolled my eyes, noticing that Nick had already headed inside. Why was my brother like that?

"What were you guys even talking about?"

Another roll of my eyes as I pulled open the front door and walked inside.

"I was telling him how much I love him."

Nick was walking out of the kitchen while drinking juice straight from the carton and choked on it for a second, then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and stared at me. Blake, however, had stopped at the front door. "Excuse me?"

"I was being sarcastic. What is wrong with you?"

"Oh!" I heard the relief in his voice and made my way to the living room. Mom was sitting on the couch, reading a magazine.

"Hey! How was the driving lesson?" she asked me.

"It was awesome. Not a single scratch on his car." I flopped down next to her.

"I gotta admit I'm impressed," Blake said.

"Well, you kids are back just in time. I have news to share. We just made plans for the evening. So, if you have any, cancel them. You too, Nick."

"What? We were finally about to hit the club." He sighed and buried his face in his hands, settling down on the adjacent couch.

"You can go tomorrow. We have guests coming over tonight. The Williams. Lily and Luke are home, and our schedules are matching after a really long time, so we've invited their family over."

Blake deadpanned.

"Oh!" I blinked.

My parents had always kept a nice equation with the Williams, unaware of my brother's and Matt's rivalry. But they'd always went out to dinners in restaurants whenever they wanted to hang out until now. Mom must've invited them over since Blake and Nick were home, too.

"You even hang out with Matt and Aiden, don't you?" Mom looked between the three of us.

"Of course." I nodded, stifling a grin.

"Great! It's gonna be nice bonding time for you kids, and I haven't met Lily in forever. Dress up everyone, okay?" She rubbed her hands in excitement and left the living room.

"I'm gonna be sick." Blake glowered.

"This is going to be so much better than the club." Nick threw him a smirk and folded his arms.

*****

I was wearing a simple, sleek red evening gown that had a slit on the left side, running from my upper thigh. I thought it was a bit too much for just a dinner at home until I saw what mom was going to wear.

Hers was a beautiful off shoulder black beauty, so I assumed Lily was going to dress up fancy too and concluded that I looked just fine.

I applied some make-up and brushed my straight hair, leaving them falling over my shoulders. I walked downstairs at 7 p.m.

"Looking good, Becks." Nick winked at me as he stood next to Mrs. Brooke while she cooked. She held up a spatula for him. "There you go."

"Awesome." It was only supposed to be for a taste, but he licked it clean before dropping it into the sink with the dirty dishes. Nick was a foodie, big time, as it went without saying. So, what truly baffled me was how he maintained that physique that made every other girl swoon with desire whenever he walked past them.

Shaking my head, I looked around for Blake. He was in the living room, dressed up in a plaid blue shirt and gray pants, looking least interested.

"Everyone ready?" Mom stepped downstairs, her eyes lighting up when she saw me. "Oh my God, Rebekah! You look so beautiful."

"Thanks, mom. Not as beautiful as you." I chuckled just as the doorbell rang, and she practically sprinted towards the door in her heels. "They're here."

Lily and Luke were the first to walk inside with big smiles as they greeted my parents, then spotted us.

"Hey, Aunt Lily," Nick greeted her.

Her eyes widened with surprise upon finding him there, and she gave him a long hug. "Nick, look at you. You've grown so much."

Lily wasn't actually his aunt. Her and Nick's mom, Scarlet, were childhood best friends. They practically considered each other sisters, so Nick grew up calling her aunt. If she hadn't moved away after marriage with Matt's father like he'd told me, maybe Matt and Nick would've been best friends.

I couldn't imagine the horror.

"Hello, Mrs. Williams, Mr. Williams," I greeted them with a smile as they stepped inside.

"Hi, Rebekah. You look absolutely gorgeous. I haven't seen you in such a long time."

She gave me a hug, and Mr. Williams nodded at me with a smile. "Hey, kid."

My eyes fell to the front door when Aiden and Matt stepped inside.

Matt's eyes immediately landed on me, and he brazenly checked me out, saying as a greeting, "Looking lovely, Becks."

I held back a grin. "Thank you, Matt. You don't look so bad yourself." Then I whispered, "Your arms look great in that shirt."

He smirked. He was wearing a black button-down with matching denims, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and as usual, he smelled so great.

"Hey, guys." He offered a smile to Blake and Nick.

"Hey, man!" Nick greeted back, but my brother stayed quiet, only giving a curt nod.

Well, so far, so good.

Our parents moved their conversation straight to the dinner table, and while everyone settled in their seats, Matt, very sneakily, seated himself right next to me and acted surprised like it was the most random thing. "Oh, hey again!"

"Hey!" I grinned.

Right across from me was Blake who was busy glaring at him but not in an 'I see what you're doing, asshole' way but in an 'I don't like you in general' way.

"Love the view here," Matt whispered to me once my brother had taken his eyes off him, and during the dinner, he grabbed my hand under the table.

I threw him a brief look before looking up. My brother was chewing his food in silence.

Mom was busy talking to Lily. They both talked a lot. Dad and Luke occasionally brought up business.

I felt Matt's fingers tip toeing across my hand, and then he brought them down to my knee. The slit allowed him to touch my skin, and my face flushed hot. I swatted his hand away.

He subtly tilted his head, a spark dancing in his eyes at the clear effect his touch had on me.

"How's your music coming up, Becks?" he asked me, catching my brother's attention too.

"It's good," I replied.

"When is that competition?"

"Next week."

"That's close. Are you prepared enough? Because if you need my help, I'm always up for it. Come over any time you want."

I opened my mouth to come up with a response, but my mother beat me to it.

"That's so nice of you, Matt." Mom beamed at him. "I've told her many times to reach out to you for help. I don't know why she doesn't when you are such a great singer."

"I'm sure she's got this, Mom," Blake cut in.

"Of course, but it wouldn't hurt to train under an expert, right?"

"I'm always willing to take her under me," Matt said politely.

I choked on my drink for a second and cleared my throat. "Sorry."

"But you're too kind, Mrs. Andrews," he continued, a mischievous smile hidden under that good boy facade. "Maybe Rebekah's just too shy to ask for help." Then he looked at me with a spark in his eyes. "Tell you what, you should come to my house every day for an hour or so until the challenge. I can train you."

"That's such a good idea. You should do that." Mom nodded at me.

I smiled. "Wow. Why didn't we think of that before?"

"Beats me." He shrugged.

"I'll come to your house tomorrow."

"Great!" A squeeze on my thigh.

I shot him another warning look, and he threw me a subtle, cunning wink before he went back to eating. I looked up at my brother nervously, and he was looking at mom with a straight face. He hadn't caught that. Thank God!

Our moms got busy talking about the latest gossip on the block while everyone ate in silence. As I was fetching the bowl on my left, I accidentally knocked over Matt's glass, throwing its contents on him.

"Shit, sorry!" I muttered. He'd at least caught the glass and placed it back on the table before it could shatter on the floor.

"Rebekah!" Mom looked at me with disapproval.

"It's fine," Matt said quickly. "I'm gonna go clean this up. Excuse me."

"Of course. Blake, will you show him to the bathroom?" she asked him.

Blake rolled his eyes. "He's been over. I'm sure he knows his way."

Mom's eyes widened for a moment, then she scowled at him, looking between both of us like 'what is wrong with my kids?'.

"I'll show him." I immediately got up, and relief crossed her face as she nodded at me gratefully.

"Thank you, Rebekah," Matt muttered, following after me as I walked down the corridor.

"Not a problem," I stated once we were out of everyone's sight. I pushed the bathroom door open for him, stepping out of the way.

He took a step inside, grabbed my wrist, and swiftly pulled me inside the bathroom with him. A little smirk curled across my lips when he shut the door with his foot. I'd been hanging out with him a lot to pick up his reactions.

I grabbed a towel and dampened it under the faucet, watching him through the mirror. "Don't get any ideas. We're not doing anything."

"We aren't?" He smirked and took the towel from me, wiping his clothes with it. "You enjoy spilling things on me, don't you?"

I crossed my arms with a grin.

He noticed that, eyes turning playful. "I'm talking about the first day of this school year when you spilled coffee on me."

"On us," I corrected and let out a laugh. "God! I hated you so much that day."

His movements slowed to a halt, and he stared up at the mirror, meeting my eyes. "I remember."

Slowly, he closed the distance between us and snaked an arm around my waist, pulling me back into his chest. Then, he lowered his chin onto my shoulder, all the while holding my gaze in the mirror.

I beheld our reflection, a feeling of warmth settling inside me at the sight. "I don't usually believe in jinxing, so I'm gonna say this. We look nice together."

"Yes, we do."

He placed the towel on the counter and turned me around. His hand lifted to my face and cupped my cheek. "You look really beautiful tonight, Becks. God knows I'm having a hard time keeping my hands to myself."

"Then don't," I whispered playfully, teasing him.

His eyes darkened, and a wave of heat surged through my body.

The very next moment, I was heaved up on the counter with my back pressing against the enormous mirror. He didn't give me a second to catch my breath as he claimed my lips with an intense fervour, pouring everything he had in the kiss.

My back arched against him as I buried my fingers in his hair and pulled.

"Matt," I whimpered. "This... we really shouldn't. Our families are out there."

"Okay." He nodded.

Then, he kissed me harder. And I matched his intensity when I kissed him back.

I was going to lose myself. I wrapped my legs around his waist, tilting my head to give him better access to my neck. His lips trailed across my jaw, leaving small bites until they stopped at my neck.

For a moment, we just stayed like that, our heavy breathing creating a mist of desire around us in the bathroom. His hot breath was fanning my skin, and I opened my eyes.

With a sigh, he finally pulled away but didn't let me get off the counter yet as he placed a firm hand on my thigh, shooting up tingles across my leg.

"You know, ever since I've known about that beautiful tattoo of yours, I can't stop thinking about it. I wanna keep seeing it."

"Are you asking for a peek?" I raised a playful brow.

"No." He swallowed visibly. "Not right now."

I knew I was the one who'd suggested we stop and I was the one who'd get in most trouble if we got caught but how could I ever let go of an opportunity of sexually frustrating him and relishing the effect I had on him?

"Why not?" I whispered, hooking a finger under the dress strap on my left shoulder and slowly sliding it down.

"Don't," he warned, grabbing it and securing it back on my shoulder. "...unless you want to be here until someone has to come and find us," he whispered, leaving an open-mouthed kiss at the base of my neck. "Just stop."

"You stop first." I tangled my fingers in his hair and tilted his head back, and he let me, his eyes never leaving mine. I smiled with satisfaction.

"Becks," he groaned.

I nodded, then let out a chuckle at the sight of him on my whim for a change in a situation like this.

He narrowed his eyes playfully and got me off the counter. Holding me in his arms, he backed up until his back was against the door. He shut his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them again, he was more present, like he'd just mentally come back from some other place.

"You really are the cenger of my world."

A laugh broke free from my mouth. I'd googled it, and it really wasn't a word. So, now he just sounded like a toddler who couldn't get his words right. But I loved the way he was using it anyway.

"What do you think? How long before your brother comes here to find us?" he asked.

"I'll give it at least a minute more."

"I really think he's started to suspect something."

"At this point, if he hasn't suspected anything, I'm not sure I even want him as my brother."

He laughed.

"We should go back, Matt."

"Yes, we should." He twisted the knob and stepped out. I'd half expected Blake to be standing outside and catching us red-handed. It would've saved me the trouble of telling him. But that wasn't the case.

As Matt followed me back to the table, we realized everyone was busy talking. I wondered if we could've taken another minute in there.

We settled back down and started having our dinner in silence. Every time he brushed his hand against my thigh or my arm, I found myself blushing.

One time, I looked up and found Blake giving me a weird look. I offered him a nervous smile and shrugged slightly.

After dinner, we all gathered in the living room to see off the Williams even though they lived just across the street.

"I'll see you at my house after school tomorrow, Becks," Matt said while leaving, and I nodded at him, waving him goodbye.

"Like hell you will," Blake scoffed once we'd shut the front door after them and settled on the living room couch, propping his feet up on the table.

"What do you mean?" I frowned.

"What? Are you seriously considering this?" He blinked at me.

"Why not? He can train me better."

"But it's Matt. Are you sure you need his help?"

"He's helped me before." I shrugged.

He did not agree with me but did not argue either, and I was really thankful for that.